"You Bastard!"
A roar tore through the air the moment Vincent left the room.
A person broke through the crowd.
Thud!
He grasped Vincent by the collar, headbutting him.
"Ughh!"
Blood gushed forth as Vincent stumbled backward.
"Stand still." A hand rested on his back, supporting him from falling. Livia.
"You can't fall here. Not now," She whispered in his ear.
The crowd around froze.
Then, the silence gave way to whispers.
Vincent bore the pain and glared at the attacker.
"It's because of you they all died! You abandoned them!"
A man, cleanly shaved but with disheveled black hair, pointed accusingly at Vincent.
His fingers trembled as he gasped for breath.
'BASTARD!'
Vincent's mind went blank.
He stepped forward.
Thud!
But before he could swing, Livia grabbed his fist and stood by his side, covering his fist like a murder weapon.
Vincent looked at his fist.
'What am I doing?'
In that single second, he snapped out of it and controlled his impulse.
'I see.'
He looked around.
Everyone whispered, gazes directed at him.
No one believed the man's words, but they had planted a seed of doubt.
If he had carried out his impulse just now, he would've played in his hands.
He intended to provoke a reaction.
'Nice acting,'
A glint of pity flashed in his eyes as he looked at the man with bulging veins on his face.
But his eyes also carried a trace of concealed self-mockery and guilt.
'Almost as good as me,'
"Peter." Vincent smeared the blood on his face with the back of his hand in an attempt to wipe it off.
Blood still gushed out, dripping on the hospital floor.
But he paid no mind.
"I never abandoned them. It was a joint decision for me to deliver an important message."
"Hmph! Same thing! You left them. And what could be so important that it couldn't wait?"
Peter deliberately raised his voice, spreading his arms and glancing around as if inviting the onlookers to judge.
"Please enlighten us."
'Tsk,' Vincent gritted his teeth.
He is using public opinion to pressure him.
One wrong move, one wrong word, and everyone could turn against him.
"I…"
"He did not abandon us."
A voice came from the crowd.
Liam.
He had left earlier, but now, seeing the commotion, he returned.
The crowd made way, and he came face to face with Peter.
"It was a joint decision for Vincent to deliver the message."
Liam stared him dead in the eye.
Unconsciously, Peter stepped back.
He couldn't hold eye contact.
Not with Liam, a man who was on the verge of death a couple of hours ago.
"As to what the message was, you are not qualified to know..."
Liam pressed his finger on Peter's chest.
"And know that it put the existence of the group at risk."
"Now, SCRAM!"
He roared, then looked around.
"Is this how you care about Gerold? Are you here for drama?!?"
"SCRAM!"
Faced with Liam's furious roar, the crowd dispersed.
"Thank you."
Vincent acknowledged the help.
"Don't mention it." Liam patted his shoulder, his gaze lingering on Vincent's bloody face a second longer.
A strange gaze.
'Hmmm?' Livia's green eyes flashed a strange light. 'Interesting.'
"Take care of yourself."
Then he turned and walked away.
Watching his back, Livia let a smile curl on her lips.
"Come,"
She snapped out of it and pulled Vincent along.
She led him away to a room to stop the bleeding and clean him.
…
She cleaned his face and gently stuffed cotton into his nose.
"It's not broken. That's good."
She commented, but Vincent just smiled bitterly.
"Sighh,"
A sigh escaped her lips, and she stopped treating him.
She could see right through his mental state.
Coldness flashed in her eyes.
"Don't blame yourself."
The atmosphere in the room shifted at once.
"It turned out for the best"
For a moment, Vincent stared at her in disbelief.
The bitter smile returned on his li[s/
'Yes, this is her real self,'
His memory refreshed.
'She is an even better actor than me,'
"Had you been there, I doubt you could've changed much. Kai would've still needed to save you."
Each word pierced Vincent.
But he could only clench his fists in frustration. Frustration at his own weakness.
"And…"
Livia's voice lowered, her eyes turning colder.
"You would've revealed yourself. What you truly are…"
Thump! Thump!
Vincent's eyes snapped wide.
His heart shook.
"That…is true…"
His pupils trembled—fear and disbelief.
"And I doubt their story is what really happened."
Livia added casually.
Yet Vincent remained silent.
"Sighh…" Livia shook her head again, her metal covers for her torn ears dangling.
He wasn't listening to her.
"Alright, you can go."
...
Vincent left the room and walked down the hallway, his nose stuffed with cotton.
With each step, his body swayed.
The hallways were no longer desolate.
People whispered, pointing fingers at him. But he didn't notice them.
Livia's words rang in his head.
"You would've revealed yourself. What you truly are…"
His heart raced, and his gaze blurred.
Tears welled in his eyes.
His nails dug into his flesh.
Slowly, his subconscious was coming to a realization.
…
At last, he reached his room.
Once inside, he locked the door.
The curtains covered the windows, plunging the room into half-darkness, though they couldn't completely stop the light.
THUD!
Vincent sprawled on the ground.
"Aghh…aghhhh…"
His voice cracked.
Tears streamed down uncontrollably.
"How dare you! How dare you!"
His eyes trembled in fury.
"How dare you feel guilty…act guilty!!"
Everything came crashing down.
"Bastard! Monster…"
The moment Livia uttered those words, all his guilt vanished.
He felt nothing.
Even more, he felt glad he wasn't there and revealed himself.
"What have I become?"
His voice turned begging.
Everything disappeared the moment his personal safety was threatened.
He just thought he felt guilty. And acted guilty! Because he wanted to feel guilty! Because HE WAS!
But he couldn't feel it.
He didn't know what he felt anymore.
"Someone…please answer me…"
Or what his true self was.
"What am I?"
[Notice]
An illusory window flashed before his eyes, as if answering his plea.
[1.000.000 beings successfully infected]
[You receive: 5 attribute points]
"Aghhhh….ahhhh…"
His wails grew, for an answer descended in his mind.
He was the bringer of human suffering.
…
SLAP!
An echo tore the silence of the room.
"Who allowed you to act without consulting me first?"
Liam's angry roar filled the room.
Peter stood before him, his cheek red.
"I consulted with everyone else."
Peter fired back.
"Yes, but no one else was there. No one witnessed what I did!"
"What could have happened? Why do you protect Vincent so much!? We all agree he is unworthy to lead the group. This is the perfect opportunity to take him down. Although Gerold didn't want to join us, he is beloved throughout the group. As long as we push the blame for his injuries on Vincent, we can turn the group against him!"
"Ignorant fool!"
Liam scoffed, but deep in his eyes, fear gleamed.
"What really happened is far beyond anything you can imagine…"
…